PS. You can't have her back.

This story is just unbearably lovely.

A user on CraigsList recently posted a letter to the person who used to own their rescue dog. The new owners found their dog, Cathy, at the Animal Care and Control after the previous owner was evicted from their apartment, and the dog seized.

The letter in full will bring a tear to your eye (well, it will if you’re like me, and moving stories about dogs tend to bring tears to your eyes), so we’ve decided to republish it in full.

Have a read….

On Feb 9th 2011, you were evicted from an apartment at *** and your old red pit bull was seized by animal control and taken to the kill shelter. She was really skinny and had bad skin infections, and had been bred A LOT. She’d even had a Caesarian, judging by the scar. They said at the kill shelter she was 12 years old. She also had a lopsided face and it looked like there were a few cigarette burns on her head/ears.

I figure you were having a pretty bad time of it, since you were being evicted. I hope things have gotten better for you in the intervening years. Although it’s unlikely you’ll ever see this note, I just wanted you to know that I have your dog and she is doing great.

This is where the new owners explain the condition Cathy was in when they brought her home – and how she’s improved since.

The AC named her Cathy, for Catherine Street. She was held for cruelty investigation (she was REALLY skinny) then immediately put on the kill list, which is the sort of irony that happens at Animal Care & Control every day. I like old dogs and I loved Cathy’s little lopsided face. A rescue pulled her for me and sent her north.

She gained weight and recovered from her skin issues. Her coat shines now and you can’t see the little round cigarette burn marks any more. We spayed her (her hormones were really out of whack from all the litters she had). She has been wonderful with my young daughter, and our other two dogs. And it turns out she loves to swim!

She loves fetch too. If she really was 12 back in 2011, that would make her 15 now but I doubt that as she still will go on long hikes with me, and swim and retrieve balls from the bay until she can barely stand… even though, yes, her face is turning white. She is truly an ambassador for her breed, even people who don’t like pits will stop and pat her as she happily wags her tail. She loves to sleep in sunbeams, and is so happy to go on walks or swims she just wags her tail with every step.

And now for the touching ending to this story…

She is sleeping next to me as I type this, grunting with joy. In fact, she sleeps on my bed every night. Your dog is an awesome dog. We love her so much. The past three years we’ve had with her have brought us (and her) so much happiness.

If you do see this, we’d love to know how old she is, and what your name for her was. Also please say a prayer for her, as soon she is going to have mammary surgery to remove some small lumps… unfortunately not spaying a dog and breeding her a lot means she is very likely to get mammary cancer, and Cathy has it. Luckily my vet caught it early, so I am hoping Cathy can spend many more happy years with us. She really is the best dog.

P.S. you can’t have her back.

And now you probably want to see what Cathy looks like today.

JUST LOOK AT THAT FACE.

It’s so heartbreaking that many animals end up in situations where they are not being properly looked after; or worse, actively abused. Cathy was found with cigarette burns on her head and ears – and that’s just one example of how she was abused. How many domesticated animals can be abused.

Pets are loving, living creatures. Thanks to people like Cathy’s new owners, Cathy got a second chance at experiencing both those things – and a chance to give love back in return.

If you’d like to see another heartbreaking – but ultimately heart-warming – rescue dog story, here’s one Mamamia has shared before. This dog was found on the streets in Canada by the Quebec Society for the Protection of Animals, when spotted by a pedestrian who first thought the dog was a pile of trash. The poor thing then underwent this amazing transformation. 

If you would like to help promote the care and protection of animals in Australia, please visit the RSPCA – for all creatures great and small.